Stitchers: Everything You Need to Know About ABC Family's First Procedural Drama

ABC Family is flipping the script on that age-old saying with its new sci-fi series Stitchers, which premieres tonight. The show centers on Kirsten (Emma Ishta), a computer science grad student who suffers from a rare condition called "temporal dysplasia" that makes her the perfect recruit for a covert government agency to hack into the brains of deceased people to solve their murders. Got all that? Phew!

To get the lowdown on the network's first procedural drama ever—that's right, move over all you CSIs and Law & Orders!—we went straight to the incredibly good-looking cast to get all the scoop on who you should be 'shipping and who you should be afraid of!

1. Don't be afraid of the labelsJust because it's described as a sci-fi show or procedural drama, that doesn't mean that's all it is. "The sci-fi part is just the set-up, with the technology of what they're doing, and it's such an interesting take on a sci-fi show mixed with a cop show," Salli Richardson-Whitfield, who plays mysterious authority figure Maggie, tells E! News. "But it's really more about the relationships and Kirsten learning more about her past and all these friendships that you're going to see evolve while they're solving the crimes. So even if you don't like sci-fi, there's still something for everyone to enjoy."

2. There's more than just dramaStitchers also isn't afraid of venturing into the light! "We're solving crimes that are serious, but all the characters are fun and light-hearted and find the humor in situations," Ritesh Rajan, who plays lab geek Linus, says. "Like Linus, he's a brainiac. Everything that goes on in the lab scientifically, under the hood with the gadgets and computers and stitching technology, he has his hands in. But at the same time, he's a total goofball. He thinks he's a ladies man but he's not the best. He tries to be a charmer! And he's not afraid to be himself, and sometimes that works in his favor, but most of the time not so much."

3. It's not all work and no playWe'll get to learn about all the characters' lives outside of their government work. "There's a scene coming up between me and Kyle [Harris] who plays Cameron, where we do a bro night, just the two of us and a few people from the lab," Rajan says. "We just hang out in his apartment. You'll get to see a different side of the guys that's not just being brainiacs in the lab working. You'll get a taste of who they are outside of the lab."

4. You won't know who to trustViewers may not immediately trust the protagonist, Kirsten, because of her condition that makes her seem cold and uncaring. And then there's the people around her who may be hiding secrets. "It's fun for me because I always seem to end up playing the good guy, but you don't really know for sure where Maggie is coming from," Richardson-Whitfield says. "It's fun to be a little bit evil."

5. There's never been a main character like Kirsten beforeIt might be hard to connect with Kirsten at first, but Ishta promises that that's just the beginning of her journey. "Her condition affects her ability to comprehend the passage of time, and every moment feels like it's always been there, like déjà vu. And it also affects her ability to emotionally connect with herself and other people," Ishta tells E! News. "But throughout the season her work with this covert organization affects her in a really big way. Each time she stitches into someone, she feels their emotions and then it leaves her with residual emotions. She's experiencing emotions really for the first time."

6. Get ready to start 'shipping!With so many attractive people, there's bound to be some sparks. "When Cameron meets Kirsten, everything changes for him," Harris, who plays Cameron, the head of the Stitchers program, tells E! News. "She's so beautiful and working in his lab, so he starts to get real feelings for her. But at the same time, he definitely feels a major responsibility to keep her safe because you'll learn that in the past, there actually were some things that went wrong in the program and he's determined to make sure that never happens again."

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